Italian Vegetable Booster (stock)

I prefer to call my Thermomix Stocks, “Vegetable Boosters” or “Flavour Boosters”. I know, I know, I’m a little bit old school, because they’re not really stocks in the sense of the word. But I believe they are Flavour boosters. I made my first batch, way back when I purchased my very first Thermomix. I loved it, although after a while I noticed everything was tasting the same. Of course!

So a batch of new recipes were born. I made Asian stock, French stock, Middle eastern stock, and this Italian Stock. It’s another favourite in our house. I can be found adding it to a pizza sauce base, my quick spag bog, sauce mixes and stews, gosh we even add it to our frittata base in our Italian dinner party class.

Bec’s Italian Vegetable Booster

Use this stock in any recipe that calls for TM Vegetable stock. These flavours enhance your dish with an Italian flavour base.

Author: Bec

Ingredients

1full head of garlic peeled

1onion approx. 180g

1bulb of fennel approx. 200g or celery if fennel isn’t available

1capsicum approx. 200g

1carrot approx. 200g

300gSundried tomatoes

20mlof sunflower oil or oil from above

15gOregano

10gthyme

1Big handful of basil

1bay leaf

Approx. 10 peppercorns

Big handful of Parsley

150grock salt

Method

Add all ingredients up to and including the carrot and set for 6 seconds on speed 7.

Then add the ingredients up to and including the parsley and set for another 6 seconds on speed 7

Add the oil and salt and cook on Varoma temp for 20 mins, speed 2.

When it’s done cooking, put your MC in place. Upside down is best so it doesn’t get hot and burn your fingers and slowly turn the dial to 6 after a few seconds you can move up to speed 10.

Chef Notes

Note: If you find it’s a bit too dry to mix and there’s an airlock underneath preventing the blades to do their job, use your TM spatula to keep things moving but reduce the speed. You need to be careful it is quite hot it’s ok to let it cool down a bit first.

Now you have about 1 litre of Italian flavour booster to use in any recipe that calls for deep red Italian flavours. I often make this in ½ batches because I usually have lots of flavour boosters on the go at the same time.

Recipe Notes

Note: You can make all my flavour boosters without salt and freeze them in ice cube trays. They will last up to 3 months like this.